cncfandomcom-20200223-history
Dolphin (Red Alert 2)
Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) are incredibly intelligent marine mammals. Specially-trained dolphins are an integral part of the Allied Navy, which used them as scouts and cheap defense against enemy ships. Background Allied scientists realized that the intelligent dolphins would be useful as a swift underwater scout unit when properly trained, and so dolphins became part of the Allied arsenal in the fight against global communism. Dolphins are trained from Naval shipyards, where they can also be healed. Usage Being no larger than any other sea animal (less than 15 feet long and weighing less than 1500 lbs), dolphins are basically invisible to radar and sonar, until they get close enough to an enemy unit for them to discern the idiosyncrasies of the dolphin. Due to their natural ability for echolocation, the Allies managed to fit the dolphins with equipment that would amplify the sonar pulses enough to damage Soviet craft. These attacks were particularly effective against the Soviet Giant Squid, due to the squids' natural sensitivity to water-based vibrations. The focused sonic attacks of the dolphins caused the squids considerable pain. The squid, disoriented, would release its grasp on any ship it might be holding captive at the time. Dolphins were also highly effective in groups, as their sonic pulses could damage multiple targets at once. Surrounding a submarine or other naval force with dolphins tended to have a greater than 1:1 damage ratio. The dolphins were first deployed in the Florida Keys which was a few short kilometers from Cuba when a giant squid attacked a civilian cruise ship. They rescued the ship from being torn apart and went on to harass the Soviet fleet. Counters The dolphins were not armored or fitted with any serious body protection, and rely on speed and stealth to survive encounters with enemy forces. The Soviets soon found that their Sea Scorpions' flak cannons are highly lethal to the dolphins. Torpedoes from Typhoon submarines also works, but rather less efficient when it comes to large schools of dolphins. Aftermath It is not known to operate after the events of the Psychic Dominator Disaster. After Cherdenko's trip to 1927, the Dolphin is now capable of high jumping to avoid land attacks. Assessment Pros *Submerged and can detect enemy submerged units. *Area of effect attack (all line in front of the dolphin deal damage). *Cheapest naval unit in the Third World War. *Very fast movement. *Only unit that can stop Giant Squid attack. *Powerful in groups. *Can indirectly force-attack in order to maximize potential against Naval Shipyards. Cons *Lightly armored, low health. *Attack is too narrow. *Attack may damage friendly units. *Sea Scorpions are truly a threat for them. *Somewhat better being scout than Destroyer but requires Battle Lab. *Can be mind-controlled (reason of how dolphin can be mind-controlled is unknown). *The Genetic Mutator can eliminate large dolphin groups. The Iron Curtain and Chronosphere are able to do the same, but within a smaller radius. *Cannot be teleported (if one were to use the Chronosphere). Trivia *In real life, the military dolphin is trained for military purposes. The United States and Russian militaries have trained and employed oceanic dolphins for several reasons. Such military dolphins have been trained to rescue lost naval swimmers or to locate underwater mines. Gallery File:RA2_Dolphin_French_Icons.gif|Icon with French text File:RA2_Dolphin_Korea_Icons.gif|Icon with Korean text File:RA2_Dolphin_China_Icons.jpeg|Icon with Chinese text File:RA2_Beta_Dolphin_Veteran_Icons.png|Beta veteran icon File:RA2_Dolphin_Manual_Render.gif|Manual/website render Category:Animals Category:Red Alert 2 Allied Arsenal Category:Red Alert 2 Ships